Carol S. -
Great addition to the series.
Susan F. (scoutmomskf) -
The blurb isn't quite correct - Becky and Nick are separated, not yet divorced. Nick is a professional football player whose focus during football season is only on football, his wife and sons are way down on his priority list. During a game near Christmas, Nick is seriously injured, bringing unwanted publicity to his family. That publicity motivates a desperate ex-con to kidnap Nick and Becky's twin sons.
Becky still loves Nick, but she's tired of she and the boys taking second place to football. She's moved to the family ranch with them and is trying to move on with her life. When the boys are kidnapped she has to put her feelings aside and work with Nick to find their sons.
Forced together by circumstances, Becky and Nick have to try to get along for the sake of their search. Instinct has Becky wanting to lean on Nick for support, but experience has her reluctant to depend on him. She spends a lot of time trying to keep him at a distance, protecting her heart from having it broken again. Nick left the hospital against doctor's recommendations in order to help in the search for his sons, risking the possibility that his injuries could be permanent. He loves Becky and his sons and has trouble understanding what the problem has been with their marriage. Now, in the midst of the crisis, he finally starts to see what his focus has cost him. Becky also begins to see that her own expectations may have been unrealistic. I liked seeing them repair their relationship while dealing with the crisis. I liked the way that they worked out their future.
The whole kidnapping event put me a little in mind of the story The Ransom of Red Chief by O. Henry. While this kidnapper was definitely more on the nasty side than ridiculous, the two boys did not make it easy for him to pull off the kidnapping. I thoroughly enjoyed their ingenuity as they worked to escape, and also try to disable the bad guy. On the adults' side, I liked seeing how they all worked together to find the boys. The final confrontation was nerve wracking as I wondered if Nick's injuries were going to interfere with the rescue.
Becky still loves Nick, but she's tired of she and the boys taking second place to football. She's moved to the family ranch with them and is trying to move on with her life. When the boys are kidnapped she has to put her feelings aside and work with Nick to find their sons.
Forced together by circumstances, Becky and Nick have to try to get along for the sake of their search. Instinct has Becky wanting to lean on Nick for support, but experience has her reluctant to depend on him. She spends a lot of time trying to keep him at a distance, protecting her heart from having it broken again. Nick left the hospital against doctor's recommendations in order to help in the search for his sons, risking the possibility that his injuries could be permanent. He loves Becky and his sons and has trouble understanding what the problem has been with their marriage. Now, in the midst of the crisis, he finally starts to see what his focus has cost him. Becky also begins to see that her own expectations may have been unrealistic. I liked seeing them repair their relationship while dealing with the crisis. I liked the way that they worked out their future.
The whole kidnapping event put me a little in mind of the story The Ransom of Red Chief by O. Henry. While this kidnapper was definitely more on the nasty side than ridiculous, the two boys did not make it easy for him to pull off the kidnapping. I thoroughly enjoyed their ingenuity as they worked to escape, and also try to disable the bad guy. On the adults' side, I liked seeing how they all worked together to find the boys. The final confrontation was nerve wracking as I wondered if Nick's injuries were going to interfere with the rescue.
